Washington, D.C., November 21, 2023
Photo: pravlife.org
The Ukrainian state’s persecution of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church is becoming more of an issue of concern in America.
The issue has received coverage from Tucker Carlson, and was mentioned by presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy at a recent Republican debate. The Church is now being represented free of charge by attorney Robert Amsterdam of AMSTERDAM & PARTNERS LLP, who has spoken with Carlson and several other outlets.
And according to a recent report from Voice of America, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCRIF)— a state agency responsible for reviewing possible violations of religious freedom abroad and providing policy recommendations to the president, Secretary of State, and Congress—has voiced its concern.
The Commission recently appealed to the State Service of Ukraine for Ethnopolitics and Freedom of Conscience, calling for the state to respect the rule of law even amidst the war. “Ultimately, the Ukrainian government must ensure that the law does not target law-abiding citizens because of their religious beliefs or affiliation, or in any way prevent people from peacefully practicing their religion with others,” the Commission said, specifically raising the issue of the Parliament’s bill for banning the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.
MPs voted in favor of the bill in its first reading last month, and it is currently undergoing revision before being submitted for a second reading.
In typical state fashion, Viktor Yelensky, the head of the Ethnopolitics-Freedom of Conscience Service, skirted the issue, saying: “This is not about religious freedom. It’s about national security. It’s about human rights. Submission to the Moscow Patriarchate is not part of Orthodox teaching.”
Similar arguments were made during a recent propaganda tour in America by various Ukrainian religious representatives, including “Archbishop” Evstraty Zorya, one of the most public faces of the schismatic, graceless “Orthodox Church of Ukraine.”
What Yelensky and the others conceal from the media and government agencies and representatives is that the issue is not about “submission to the Moscow Patriarchate,” but about remaining a canonical Church, in communion with the rest of the Orthodox Church. In contrast, the OCU is composed of schismatics who were never ordained and are not recognized by the fullness of the Orthodox Church.
Meanwhile, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is also again sounding the alarm about religious freedom in Ukraine, concerning the proposed bill for banning the Church and the legal charges being brought against various hierarchs and clergy.
In her speech to the UN Security Council on November 17, Ilze Brands Kehris, Assistant Secretary General for Human Rights, drew attention to the bill that was passed by the Verkhovna Rada in its first reading, noting that, “International law permits restrictions on the freedom to manifest religion only if they are prescribed by law and necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals, or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.”
“OHCHR is closely monitoring how legislative developments in Ukraine may impact enjoyment of freedom of religion,” Kehris said, adding that the Office has previously expressed concern over the cumulative impact of government actions targeting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church that could be discriminatory.
The Assistant Secretary-General also noted that the OHCHR is monitoring 44 criminal cases brought against UOC clergy and has “identified concerns regarding the fairness of the criminal proceedings” in at least 26 cases.
“Full respect for due process and fair trial rights in these extremely sensitive cases must be ensured,” said Kehris.
The OHCHR has also documented 10 cases of physical violence and six cases of threatened violence during church seizures since February 2022.
“Regrettably, Ukrainian law enforcement’s response in these cases has been inadequate, failing to sufficiently investigate incidents and take action to protect members of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church,” Kehris said.
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